Method of making homogeneous mechanical junctures.



A. B. HERRIOK.

METHOD OF MAKING HOMOGENEOUS MECHANICAL JUNGTURES. APPLICATION FILED mum, 1909. RENEWED JUNE 8, 1912.

1,046,46 I I 'PatentedDec.10,l912.

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ifn lsaaa' l man fa" AfB. HERRIGK. METHOD OF MAKING HOMOGENEOUS MECHANICAL JUNOTURES.

- APPLICATION FILED JUNE 4, 1909. RENEWED JUNE 8, 1912. 1,046,464.

Patented Dec. 10, 1912.

A.B. HB-RRIOK.

METHOD OF MAKING HOMOGENEOUS MECHANICAL JUNGTURES. 'AIPLIOATION FILED JUNE 4, 1909. RENEWED JUNE 8, 1912.

1,046,464. Patented De. 10,1912.

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Specification or letters Patent. Application 1101 June 6, 1908, Serial 110. 600,180. Renewed June Patented Dec. 10, 1912. a, ma. Ierlal Io. 102,011.

To aE whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ALBERT B. Hnnnrcx, a citizen of the United States, and a rosident of New York cit county of New York, and State of New ork, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Methods of Homogeneous Mechanical Junctures, of which the following is a specificato rails,

1 Serial tion, the rinciple of the invention being herein explained and the best mode in whic I have contem ple, so as to ventions.

The invention relates to a methodof making homogeneous mechanical junctures between two metallic bodies, and particularly to the joining together of copper bonds and steel rails, so as to bring the electrical'conlstinguish it from other in- .ductivity of the abutting rails up to the re quired degree.

.lhe object of the invention is to rovide such a bondin rocess that ma e carried on in a rapld and efiicient manner.

To the accomplishment ofthis and related ends, said invention consists of the ste s hereinafter fully described and particular y set forth in the claims.

The general process of making a homogeneous mechanical juncture, of which the present process is one specific aspect, is fully described and claimed in my co-pending application filed November 25, 1904, Serial N 0. 234,161. The present process may be regarded as being, in a sense, the .adaptation of such eneral process to theapplication of a bond aving the particular construction described and claimed in yet another 00- application filed April 19, 1905, 0. 256,439; although it is not intended by this reference to imply that such rocess is limited to use with a particular iiind of bond. As a matter of fact, the contrary is quite the case, as the sequel will show. The general process of which the one in hand is thus a specific as ect, is to be distinguished from processes 0 soldering bonds whether by electrical or other means, for by a homogeneous mechanical juncture I mean to designate a union between the metals more intimate than that pendingI secured at the low tem erature at which solder will melt. In ot er words, b mylated applying t hat princiresents a plan of one of the per of the bondand the steel of the rail, while at the same time the ease of operation is such that the welding may be carried on at a much increased rate of speed.

The annexed drawings and the following descri tion'set forth in detail certain steps emb ying the principle. of the invention, the disclosed met od, however, being but one of various ways in which the principle of my invention may employed.

In said annexed drawings :-Figure 1 represents a vertical transverse cross-section of a standard steel rail and a bond applied vthereto and in position for the bonding process; in this figure I have also illustrated a portion of one typical device for holding the bond in place and for providing the external source of heat required for car ing out the process. Fig. 2 represents a ont elevation of one process, such heating device being illustrated in slmilar position to that shown in- Ffig. 1 with respect to one terminal or head 0 bondis re resented as already welded to t e correspondin rail. Figs? is a plan view, with portions Tarokenaway, of bond, rail and heatlng device in the same relation as that illustrated in Fig. 2; Figs. 4, 5, 6 and 7 illustrate the carbon electrode that forms such external source of heat when current is properly supplied thereto, said electrode appearing in variously modified form, adaptlng it to the welding of bonds of diflerent ty'pes onto the rail. Fig. 8 is a side elevational view of the adjacent. ends of two abutting rails, the construction described in my co-pendin-g application, Serial N 0. 256,439, above referred to, as belng employed in the carrying out of the present rocess. Fig. 9 is a vertical cross section 0 such rail and bond with other appurtenant parts employed in the carrying on of the process. Fig. 10 repbond terminals in contact with the side of the rail which is the place it occupies in the carrying out of the rocess. And Figs. 11 and 12 respectively s ow two difierent arrangements of circuit-for the carrying on of my improved process.

The bond A which I preferably use in of the bonds used in this the bond, while the other head of such aflixed or either of the two arrangements of apparatus illustrated in Figs. 1, 2, and 3, and Figs.

8,9, andlO res ectively, is ofjthe same general character, eing' formed of laminatlons of co per ribbonof s itable dimensions,

construction, but, as indicated in' Figs. 15

cable construction of bond.

A preliminary step in the carrying on of the process is to cleanse the lateral surfaces of the abutting rails, to which it is intended to apply the bond, by removing therefrom the scale and rust which might detract from Y the formation of a perfect union. This is preferably done by grinding or chiseling, which operation may be carried on by any suitable mechanism. It is furthermorea matter of indifference how deep the surface be removed, merely such superficial impurities may be removed, or, as illustrated in Figs, 8, 9 and 10,, the'face of the .rail may be cut into so as to form a shallow recess, the surface of which presents bri ht, clean metal. The terminals of the bon are then applied to such surface, being placed in position by hand or by means of a suitable holder; and'thereupon the heating device is caused to ress upon the outer surface of such terminals, either one at a time .as shown, or both together, as found most convenient. It is to the construction of this heating device, and to the modification in the general effect obtained thereby, that at-.

tention is desired in the present connect-ion. Of such heating device, two illustrative forms are "shown, and these will now be taken up in their order, that illustrated in Fi s. 1 to 7 inclusive being considered first.

6f the heating device, only such parts are shown as are directly associated in the bonding operation, such parts consisting of a movable member (1, a holder d, removabl; clamped to the lower end of said member, and a block D of high resistance material, preferably carbon, afiixed to said holder. As described in my earlier application relating to the general process exemplified herein, such car to contact with the outer face of the bond terminal. In the present construction, as

will clearly appear from an inspection of the series of figures just named, the. face of said block is recessed, the recess (1 being given a form to correspond with that of the bond terminal so. as to fit more or less .p

snugly around the same when the latter is on block is designed merely applied to the rail as just described. Said block thus not only contacts with the outer face .of the bond terminal, but also withpoints on the face of the rail-{laterally contiguous to the portion of such face with which said bond terminal contacts. A suitable source of electricity being provided for passing. a current through a circuit includmg said carbon, the latter may be raised .to

. any desired degree of tem erature, owin to the resistance mterposed y the materia of which it is made to the passage of such current therethrough. The circuit for thus passing a current through said carbon, may be arranged either as in Fig. 11, wherein the bond and rail form a portion of the circuit, or as in Fig. 12, where the carbon block .or electrode alone of the parts under consideration is included in such circuit. Current. being thus turned on until the carbon block becomes highly heated, such heat will be transmitted by conduction through the bond to the contactmg face of the rail, which face is at the same time additionally heated' by conduction from those portions laterally contiguous thereto, wherewith the block 1 comes into direct contact. As a result, such.

contacting rail face becomes heated and softened to a suificient extent to form a homo eneous union or. weld with the coper 0 the bond terminal. Since the latter is practically inclosed by the surrounding portions of the carbon block, forming as it were a mold, it is not necessary tofguard "as carefully against the consequences of complete fusion of the terminal or portions of such terminal as in the case where a flat electrode'is pressed against the outer face of the terminal leaving its edges wholly exposed.' However, it is not contemplated that it will-be necessary to prolong the application of heat or make it of such a degree as to thus completely fuse the terminal any more than in the other specific aspect of my general'process.

i As just described, I have made no reference to the use of any 'fluxing material between the bond and rail face, nor is it necessary to the carrying out of my improved rocess, that suchmaterial. be employed. The welding operation, however, is facilitated by the use of a flux as the familiar borax, and if desired, in addition to'thi's material a strip of brass or bronze may be introduced, since I have found that owing;

to the fusion of such strip at an early stage of the'operation, by reason of its lower tem- I 'perature of fusion, a body is introduced between the bond and rail which will be a good conductor of heat as well as of electricit while at the same time, owing to the liquid state which it assumes, such body is admirably adapted to cover the juxtaosed faces of the bond and rail, so as to protect them during the subsequent stage of the operation, while the bond and rail face are being brought to a welding temperature.

In the form of apparatus illustrated in Figs. 8, 9 and 10, I do illustrate a sheet B of brass or bronze as being attached-mechanically or otherwise to the bond terminal for the purpose just referred to. The more import-ant modification, however, in the apaffixed and which is designed to contact with e the rail. In other words, in applying such material, it is caused to overlap the terminal upon the bottom and sides as shown, so as to form a mold or matrix for the head. This carbon material is thus seen to form a part of the complete bond. The top of the terminal is preferably left free, so that ifnecessary borax or like fiuxing material or additional brass may be introduced if desired between the bond and'the rail. In this construction ofthe apparatus, the current is preferably passed through not only the elec-' trode, but also the two bodies to be welded together, electrical connection with the block D being bad through a movable member a3? corresponding with the arm d of the apparatus first described.

Regarding the process in its general aspect it will be seen that the carbon block, in either of its two illustrated forms D or D, constitutes simply an external heat source whereby heat may be applied to or concentrated upon the bond. The latter then conducts the heat thus received to the portion of the rail that it is desired immediately to affect and being of a character such as to permit this conduct-ion at a very rapid rate, more rapidly, in other words, than the heat can be dissipated through the rail, I find that the contacting superficies are raised practicallysimultaneously to the required welding temperature. At the same time, by the present modification ofthe process, heat is ap: plied directly to points on the face of the rail laterally contiguous to the portion of such face thus affected by heat conducted through the bond. An augmented heating effect is thus obtained, while still retaining the advantages arising from having the heat concentrated and accurately directed toward the portions that require to be raised'to a welding temperature and no others. In other Words, the loss of time and waste of energy that would be incidental to raising to such temperature the entire section of rail adjacent to the portion to be bonded, are

avoided. By reason, moreover, of the high welding temperature of copper and steel and the rapid conduction of heat by the rail, the pressure may be relieved practically simultaneously with the turning off of the current and a satisfactory joint produced. This feature, itwill hence be seen, facilitates the operation by dispensing with the prolonged application of the pressure after the current isturned off, such prolonged pressure being a necessary-feature not merely of the Thomson process, but so far as I am aware, of all the modifications of this process heretofore attempted.

In conclusion it should be noted that in general I herein refer to the juxtaposed or contiguous faces of the bond and rail at the desired point of union as the contacting faces. This is simply for uniformity in expression, and does not of necessity imply that the faces in question are literally in contact, especially not at the beginning of the operation nor where a sheet of brass or bronze is interposed, as may be the case, irrespective of which of the two arrangements of electric circuit for carrying out the process be adopted. Where such brass or bronzeis employed, it will hence be understood, unlessexpressly' stated to the contrary, to constitutein effect a part'of the bond, ,being cured. thereto, as in the case-of the bond :hereinbefore described.

Other modes of applying the principle of my invention may be employed instead of the one explained, change being made as regards the mechanism herein discl0sed,.pro-

vided the1means stated by an of the following claims or theequiva ent of such stated means be employed.

I therefore particularly point out and distinctly claim as my invention 1. The method of homogeneously uniting met-a1 bodies having unlike heat conductivlties, which consists in holding said bodies in contact at the desired point of union, and thereupon applying heat from an external source to the bod of greater conductivity and to the face 0 the other body at points laterally contiguous to the portion of such face in contact with said first body, whereby such first body-and such contacting face of the second body are brought to a welding temperature practically simultaneously,substantially as described.

2. The method of homogeneously uniting metal bodies having unlike characteristics as to fusibility," the more readily fusible body having also the greater heat conductivity, which consists in holding said bodies in contact at the desired point of union, and thereupon applying heat from an external source to the first, or more readil fusible, body and to the face of said secon body at points laterally contiguous to the portlon preferably more or less permanently se- Ly .at the desired point of union; and there- I high resistance,

upon applying heat from an external sourceto the-first, or more readily fusible, body and to the face of said second body atpoints laterally contiguous to the portion of such face in contact with said first body, whereby such firstzbody and such contacting face of the second. body are brought to a welding temperature practically simultaneously,substantially as described.

4. The method of homogeneously uniting metal bodies which consists in holding said bodies in contact at the desired point of union; directly heating one of said bodies and the face of the other body at points laterally contiguous to the portlon of such face incontact with said first body, such heating being effected by pressing against said first body and such laterally contiguous points of said second body an electrode of and thereupon passing a heating curren't through Said electrode until a high temperature is produced in'said electrode whereby said first body and such contacting face of the second body are brought to a welding temperature practically simultaneously, substantially as described.

5. The method of homogeneously uniting metal bodies having unlike characteristicsv as to fusibility, the more readily fusible body having also the greater he'at conductivity which consists in holding said bodies in contact at the desired point of union; directly heating the first or more readily fusible body and the face of said second body. at points laterally contiguous to the portion of such face in contact with said first body, such heatin being effected by pressing against said first body and such laterally contiguous points of said second body an electrode of high resistance, and thereupon passing a heating current through said elect-rode until a high temperature is produced in said electrode whereby said first body and such contacting face of the second body are brought to a weldin temperature practically simultaneously, su stantially as described.

6. The method of homogeneously uniting metal bodies of unlike masses and different temperatures of .fusion, the smaller body havin both the lower temperature of fusion and t e greater heat conductivity; which.

consists in holding said bodies in contact holding said bodies incontact at the desired point of union; and directly heating said smaller body and the face of said second body at polnts laterally contiguous to the ortion of such face in contact with said i st body by pressing against said first body and such laterally contiguous points of said second body an electrode of high resistance, and thereupon passin a heating electric current through said 6 cctrode until a high temperature is produced in said electrode, whereby said first body and such contacting face of the second body are brought to a welding temperature practically simultaneously, substantially as described.

7. The method of homogeneously uniting metal bodies having unlike characteristics as to fusibility, the more readily fusible body having also the greater heat conductivity; which consists in holding said bodies in contact at the desired point of union; directly heating the first or more readily fusible body and the face of said second body at points laterally contiguous to the portion of such face in contact with said first body, such heating being effected by pressing against said first bodyand such laterally contiguous points of said second body an electrode of high resistance, and thereupon passing a heatin current through, said electrode and bOdlBS until 'a high temperature is produced in said electrode, whereby said first body and such contacting face of the second body are brought to a welding temperature practically simultaneously, substantially as described.

8. The method of homogeneously uniting metal bodies of unlike masses and difierenttemperatures of fusion, the smaller body having both the lower temperature of fusion and the greater heat conductivity; which consists in holding said bodies in contact at the desired point of union; and directly heating said smaller body and the face of said second body at points laterally contiguous to the portion of such face in contact with said first body by pressing against said first body and such laterally contiguous points of'said second body an electrode of high resistance, and thereupon passing a heating electric current through said electrode and bodies until a high temperature is produced in said electrode, whereby said first body and such contacting face of the second body are brought to a welding temperature practically simultaneously, substantially as described.

9. The method of homogeneously uniting a bond to a rail, which consists in holding the bond in contact with the rail at the desired point of union; and directly heating said bond and the face of said rail at points laterally contiguous to the portion of such face in contact with said bond by pressing against said bond and such laterally contiguous points of said rail an electrode. of cally simultaneously, substantially. as dehigh resistance, and thereupon passing an scribed. electric current through said electrode bond Signed by me this 27 day of May, 1909.

and rail until a high temperature is pro- ALBERTBFHERRICK. duced in said electrode, whereby said bond Attested by and such contactin face of said rail are ARTHUR S. KOTTNER,

brought to a Weldlng temperature practi- CLARENCE G. BOYDEN. 

